Nuka-Love
by JennyAnn1224
Summary: She was the hero of the Common Wealth. The defeater of the Institute, but she did not feel like a hero. Fighting her own demons she tries to forget her past and run from the present. She finds herself in a new role, thanks to a hardened man with a screwed up past as her right hand. GageXSoleSurvivor Read, review, enjoy!
1. Chapter 1: The Welcome Wagon

I emerged from the Cola Car arena with my arm hovering above my head to block the sun from my eyes. I squinted as I tried to adjust to the light of the outside. When the white light disappeared from my view, I was faced with small buildings sitting side by side and covered with red tin roofs. Big words were painted across them that read "Popcorn" or "Try a Nuke" and the famous smiling bottle and cap. The Nuka-World song blasted in my ears. I was in awe. _Nuka-World_. I had always wanted to go. I never imaged I would see it like this, though. My family never had the money to go when I was little and _my_ family… Nate had talked about taking, Shaun, one day…well I just ran out of time, I suppose.

I pushed forward, down the steps, holding my head high. I tried not to make eye contact with anyone, but I felt their eyes on me…me, the _Overboss_. It all happened so fast. Not just the gaining of my new position but the decisions I had made the last couple of days.

I remember sitting outside the Red Rocket, petting Dogmeat's head. Everyone was around me. I was praised like a hero after destroying the institute but I did not feel like one. I was on auto-pilot as I accepted compliments and gifts. Showered with affection for days but nothing registered.

All I could think about was my son, Shaun. The old man that had laid before me on his death bed. The old man who was spiteful and rude because I was destroying the only thing he was brainwashed to love the most. I wish I had more time to convince him that the company he grew up in was evil and did not deserve his respect and dedication, but again _time_ was never on my side.

I slept next to whoever I was feeling close with that night; Danse, MacCready, it did not matter. It was just a warm body to hold. I was lost in my thoughts for hours and never got to sleep for the third night in a row. Then I made my decision. In one swift move I had slowly got out of bed, packed my bag with a few valuables and left down the road. I did not take Dogmeat, or warn any of my companions that I was leaving, I just…left. I realized that I did not deserve any of their affections, my friends at the Red Rocket. Or the people of the Common Wealth. I was a fraud. I wasn't the "good guy" I was just the puppet who killed anyone who pointed the finger first.

My alliance with the Brotherhood meant nothing. I was just another solider taking orders, and I did it the best. There were many things I didn't agree with but I had no other choice than to follow orders. There was no right or wrong in this world, it was just about who had the most power. The Minute Men were the only group I could stand behind and no one took them seriously because they were too kind and too weak. This world was unforgiving and there wasn't a place for good people like the Minute Men.

I wanted to forget. This was the only way I could, by leaving. I needed to start fresh, go where no one knew who I was. I traveled until the souls of my shoes wore down. And then I found the sign _Nuka-World._ Little did I know, who the parks new inhabitants were.

Gangs. Just that word made me uneasy. My road leathers kind of blended in with the other raiders. Stained with blood and worn down from travel. It was the first time in a long time that I had not worn my Vault suit. It was a staple of who I was but I left it behind, that was a different chapter in my life that was now over.

I did not tolerate the disrespect that each group was giving me. I kept it neutral, taking no sides and no bullshit. Hell, I wasn't emotionally stable enough to be taking sides anyway. The most terrifying gang was the Disciples. They were my last stop. I talked with the leader, who was such a bitch, but so was I. She smirked at my threat, clearly enjoying the idea of an Overboss who wasn't afraid. Nisha showed me around their "club house" and that's when I lost it.

We got to the top of the stairs and my stomach lurched forward. Troughs of blood, severed heads, skinned bodies and bones littered the floor. I felt the blood drain from my face as I slowly backed up. I tried to play it cool but Nisha saw right through me.

"What's wrong _Overboss_ , feeling weak around the sight of blood…?" she was smiling.

"No. No. I'm fine." I said, hearing the break in my voice. I was no stranger to blood and gore but this was beyond anything I had seen. The smell of rust from fresh blood was so strong it trickled down my mouth and was clogging my throat. I longed for fresh air more than anything in that moment.

Her right hand, Dixie, was closing in on me with an insane smile plastered to her face. They knew I was backing up to the edge and didn't stop me. Suddenly, I couldn't feel the floor underneath me anymore. I squealed as my right arm caught the ledge. I was dangling 50 ft above a bloody mess of mashed up bodies and shish kabob limps. I screamed "Help, me up!" I tried to sound forceful but my head was swirling and my heart was thudding and ended up sounding like a child.

I saw Dixie standing above me, giggling like a maniac. My eyes were wide and I saw a knife emerge from a holster strapped to her thigh. She brought it to my fingers. "NO!" I screamed as I struggled to hang on. The blade shone bright as she angled it closer, I saw my reflection, and my eyes were filled with tears, _dammit._

"Dixie, back off." I heard Nisha order.

"Oh, Nisha, come on, just one finger!" she licked her lips as she brought her face close to her blade, laughing at my fear.

I saw Nisha grab Dixie's shoulder and push her upright and back. She grabbed me by the wrist and hauled me back on my feet. She didn't let go of her grip as she brought her face inches from mine "I see you, little girl. Don't get in my groups way and we won't have a problem." I didn't break her gaze as I felt my jaw clench. I ripped my hand from her clenched fingers and shoved past her. I made my way down the steps and out the door. I held it together until I was outside and past the guards. I kept my head down as I pushed the button to the Fizz Top Grille's elevator. A tear fell from my eye, dropped on my leather jacket and slid down my arm. I wiped at my eye. _Don't let them see you cry._

The sun had set on Nuka-town as I tossed and turned in my new bed. It reeked of alcohol and cigarettes. I got up and made my way to the far right side of the converted diner. I curled up on the yellow lounge chair and rested my chin on my knees. I watched the raiders dance and drink under the flickering light from their camp fire. It didn't matter that it was the middle of the night, it didn't stop them from making noise.

I was lost in my thoughts again, trying to accept the fact that this was my new home now. These were my people, I was a murder just like them. I killed my son and have no regret for doing it …I'm no better than the rest of them. No matter how hard I try to justify it.

I am so tired. I just want to sleep. I've been lost in my thoughts for days, my temples constantly throb, I just want peace…just for…a few…moments. My eye lids felt heavy as they slid closed. Then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I immediately jumped out of the chair and in a second my fists were protecting my face.

"Whoa, easy there, Boss." It was Gage. He walked to the chair beside mine and sat down. He leaned back, his hands pulled behind his head, elbows out. "I heard you met with all the gangs and you did well."

I relaxed and sat back down bringing my knees to my chest again "Well, than you heard wrong."

"Oh, don't worry about the disciples. I don't blame you for the way you reacted to their little shit hole. You get use it."

"They think I am weak." I stared straight ahead.

"Well..." I felt his eyes on me, then he looked away "Don't worry, you'll prove to them you aren't soft."

"How do you know I'm not?" I challenged him.

"I just know." He didn't look at me. I stared at him studying his features. He had rough, scarred skin and a large manly nose. His lips were full. His eyes were small and hid beautiful light green irises. Ruggedly handsome came to mind and before I could finish my thought he started to rise. "Well, get some sleep. Tomorrow we take the grand tour of the park."

He patted my shoulder as he left my "penthouse." I turned back resting my head on my shoulder where he placed his hand and smiled. When I caught myself I immediately frowned and shook whatever thought was emerging from my mind. I swallowed the lump in my throat and went back to my musty bed and tried to get some sleep.


	2. Chapter 2: Nuka-Town USA

I felt something hot near my cheek and then a hot steam waft into my nose. I blinked slowly a few times before my eyes fully opened. I sat up and rubbed my neck. I had a horrible crick in it from sleeping on the chair all night, I just couldn't bring myself to sleep in that dirty bed. Who knows what Colter did in that thing?

"Morn'n, Boss." Gage's mono-toned southern drawl filled my ears. I sniffed the ceramic mug he held in front of me and my eyes grew wide.

I graciously accepted the cup with two hands, never taking my eyes off of it. "Is this… coffee!?" I couldn't believe it, it had been forever since I had a cup. I sipped it slowly, closing my eyes, savoring the taste. The hot liquid streamed down my throat. "Mhm."

When I opened them again Gage was looking at me, half of his mouth curled up in a smile. When he registered that I was looking back at him he turned and cleared his throat "Alright boys, bring it in."

I sat up straight, still cradling the coffee cup. My eyes wide again as I waited to see what was happening. The back door opened and two Operators were bringing in a clean mattress, well, as clean as a Common Wealth mattress could be. I blinked twice, my mouth hanging open in a perfect "O" shape. "What's this…?" I watched Gage pick up the two old mattresses of Colter's and toss them by the door. The two raiders each took one and left.

"The perks of being Overboss" Gage said as he adjusted them on the bed frame. Then he stopped for a moment and let out a piercing whistled with his fingers "Boys!" there was silence for a second and then the door opened again "the pillow" he stretched out his hand motioning to hand it over with his fingers. They threw it to him and he fluffed it before putting it on the bed. "Whelp, there ya go."

I smiled at him, the stupid grin never leaving my face "How did you know…?"

He shrugged "Well, you're a lady and I figured you would want some better accommodations…also the way you eyed it the first time you toured the place gave it away. Also…" he pointed to the chair "You breaking your neck sleeping in that chair is another indication."

"Where did you find it…?" I walked closer.

"Leave it to the Operators to find neat and clean furniture." He huffed, clearly disapproving of their fluffy living. "Hell, any mattress would be fine by me." He uncrossed his arms and headed for the door "Now get ready, I'm going to give you a quick tour around the town before we head out."

I nodded, taking another sip of my coffee. When he left the room I set down my cup and ran to the bed, jumping on it. I buried my head in the fresh comfy pillow and smiled. _Was I spoiled or what?_

The elevator lowered right in front of Gage. He had his weapons strapped to him, ready to start our journey. "All set, Boss." I actually really enjoyed being called _Boss_.

"Yeah, we are taking a tour?" I said as we walked along side of each other. It was hard to walk close to him with his large yellow armor on.

"Yes, ma'am." He paused "I'm sorry about your first day. I know you didn't get much of a chance to look around." I nodded in silence. "Well, come on then." He walked faster in front of me "First stop is the market."

When we walked in to the large shopping area in the middle of Nuka-town I felt a pain in my stomach. The first thing I noticed were the blinking collars around the necks of the traders. "What are those?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

Gage scratched his head "just take a look around and I will meet you back here."

I walked slowly around the circle greeted by the shop sellers. Some were nice, some were fearful and others spiteful. They were salves. I was their slave owner. My heart was beating fast as I felt the throb of my temples again. I squinted my eyes and went off in the corner by the Brahmin pen.

I fought my inner demons of good and evil. My conscious telling me to leave this place, my brain telling me I deserved to rot here. They all stopped when Gage approached. He didn't say anything, he was a man of few words. Instead, he just looked at me and turned to the exit. I followed, biting my bottom lip and avoiding eye contact.

The next stop was the café, which was blood soaked. I felt sick again. We left shortly after. Gage eyed me from a side glance as we made our way around the giant bottle statue in the middle of Nuka-town. It made me wish I could read his mind. I didn't look like a leader. I looked and felt like a coward and he was probably regretting his decision to make me Overboss.

We stopped and I saw his mouth open. I was ready for a verbal lashing, a banishing from the park but instead he directed me to a building that read _Nuka-cade_ and said "Here is something, you'll enjoy." 

When we walked in the place had tons of working arcade games. We talked with the guy who ran it. He gave me a few free tokens as a welcome and then I looked at Gage. He gave a small nod of approval as I smiled and skipped to the first game. I popped my tokens in the machine and started to shoot hoops. Three baskets in I started laughing like a maniac. I was having… _fun._ It had been so long since I had laughed. I turned my head towards Gage as my shoulder length brown hair fanning around my head. "Come on, Gage! I bet I can beat you!"

He motioned his head to a different game "Nah, let's try a real challenge." I followed him to a moving target shooting game. "This is more my style" I starred at it "You ready to lose?"

I looked to the side of me, resting my chin on my shoulder. A cat like smirk spread across my face. I saw a different side of Gage. He enjoyed these games as much as I did. "You wish!" I drew my gun, as he did the same.

The targets went down one by one as our score was recorded. I won by 200 points. I jumped up and down doing a happy dance. I stuck my tongue out at him. "HA, beat ya!"

He smiled and turned away from me, swatting his hand "Yeah, yeah, did you really think I _wouldn't_ let the Overboss win?"

I smacked his arm playful "Yeah, right."

We spent a little while longer playing games and I handed in my tickets for a prize. Gage gave me whatever tickets he won so I could get something nice. When we left the arcade my cheeks were sore from laughing so much. "That was fun!" I said as we stood in the late afternoon sun.

Gage fought back a grin "Yeah, it wasn't a bad time."

We were looking at each other again and his eyes were a bright amber color in the light. "Thank you, Gage."

He looked at me, his express hard to read "For what, Boss?"

I shook my head and looked down at the purple sloth and spiked paddle ball I was holding and scoffed. _Boss_ …that's all I was. He was so nice to me because he fought for me to be in this position and he needed me to stay because it was his word on the line. I felt stupid, burying any weird and exciting feelings that may have bubbled up. "…just thanks..." I managed to choke out. There was a short silence "Well, we better go, it's already late and we have a lot of ground to cover."

We dropped off my prizes at Fizz Top and then out the front gates we went. I walked a few paces a head of Gage. Lost in my thoughts as usual.


	3. Chapter 3: Galactic Zone

When we reached the gates of Galactic Zone there were about two or three dead settlers laying out front. It appeared they were battling robots and lost the fight. Gage walked by them, completely oblivious to the loss of lives in front of him, as I felt the usual pain in my chest when I saw a fallen settler.

It made me think about how fragile our lives were in this new world. One minute you could be living in your settlement trying your hardest to make a life for yourself, one where you could live without fear. Another minute you are out trying to forage for more valuables to support your group and then you're _dead_. Never able to make it back to your settlement to see your loved ones or fend for them.

After I said a few words in my head for the Common Wealth deceased I searched their bodies. Gage didn't not say much, just observed me from a far. That's how most of the trip to Galactic Zone went. He helped me mow down what seemed like a million Mr. Frothy and Eyebots, and observed. I didn't confront him about it, I just kept doing my thing. Kill, scavenge, collect, and move on.

I felt like a test subject after a few hours of exploring the park and I was starting to get annoyed. I walked faster ahead. He didn't change his pace to keep up. I looked up at the next building. It read _Nuka Galaxy_. My attitude completely shifted when I realized this was the ride for Nuka Girl! She was my favorite character and without hesitation I made my way inside.

I immediately heard her voice, ushering me into the waiting area and encouraging me to help her save the galaxy. As I made my way through the attraction I took care of the robot attacks by myself. I knew Gage was a few feet behind me but I kept pushing forward without waiting. When I made it to the end I froze. There it was. A Nuka Girl costume, right there for the taking. I approached it completely star struck and tore it off the mannequin. I went into the rides operating room and tried it on.

"Boss…?" I heard Gage's voice emerge from the ride. "Boss, where the heck are you?"

I opened the door quietly and tried not to make any noise. I crept up behind him, my thirst zapper in hand. A crunch came from underneath my boot as I stepped on some debris and it made him turn. I popped up and blasted him with a few squirts from my water gun.

He held up his arm blocking the water "What the hell-" he was mad. As he lowered his arm he swore "what the fuck are you doin-" he stopped mid-sentence when he saw my outfit. His slanted angry eyebrows furrowed up making a crease in the center of his forehead. His mouth hung in shock. His eyes slowly looked me up and down. I studied his expression, trying to figure out if he liked what he saw.

The silence grew awkward and I didn't know what to do. I did a half-ass spin and posed, holding my squirt gun with two hands up to my face "What do you think?" I noticed his cheeks flush as he looked down to hide his reaction. _Did I just make Gage blush?_ I thought. My exposed belly button, pushed up breasts and thigh high boots actually broke this stone cold man. In that moment I felt powerful.

"I…It…It doesn't matter what I think, Boss. If you like it than keep it on." He turned away.

I bounced back into his vision "Do you know whose outfit this is?"

He was making quick glances back and forth from the ground and my breasts that were bouncing up and down from my excited jumps. He wanted to stare but didn't want to seem like a creep "No…" he struggled to say.

"I'm NUKA-GIRL!" I said playful as I started to blast random things with my squirt gun. "Will you help me defend the galaxy?" I pointed at Gage like Uncle Sam selling war bonds. He shook his head back and forth in response "Come on cadet, chin up we have a galaxy to save!" I squirted him a few more times and he swatted me away.

"Squirt me with that thing one more time and I'll-" I squirted him again and it splashed his face. He stood still for a moment with his eyes closed, clearly annoyed. His fist still raised from his dry threat. I was smiling, my mouth ajar as I waited for his response.

He wiped his face and revealed a playfully angry smile "Alright, Nuka-Girl, I'll show you who the real threat to the galaxy is! Come here!" He grunted as he went to chase me.

I laughed as I ran away from him, squirting him some more "I'm not afraid of you, evil alien scum!" I ran back into the control room to change.

After our Nuka-Galaxy charades we continued to the other side of the park. It was dark now and we searched for a place to rest. We came up on a building named _Starlight Interstellar Theater_ and figured it was our best option to spend the night.

We stopped, ducked down in the doorway. "You hear that?" I said as we listened closer. It sounded like screaming and then the compression of steam. "There must be robots in here." I warned.

We made our way slowly into the building and immediately were caught by a Mr. Frothy. We shot down the annoying robots as we walked into a large theater with booths that looked like Nuka-Rockets. It resembled a drive-in. Just when we thought we were safe we heard the deep robotic voice of a Sentry. He powered up, his red eyes glowing in the dimly lit theater. We took cover behind the wall as he shot machine gun lasers at us.

"Shit, this thing is tough. I've never seen anything like that." Gage said as he braced himself against the wall, the ground shaking from the heavy machine gun blasts.

I was started loading my Spray n' Pray as I spoke "Really? I've dealt with these things a hand full of times."

"Where are you going?" he said as I got up fully loaded and ready to attack. "You can't go out there" his eyes were pleading.

"Trust me" I revealed myself to the clump of metal on wheels and blasted him with everything I had. Pieces of metal were flying off of him. He shot back each bullet shaking my body as they were stopped by my armor. I knew I was going to feel that later. Then with a few rounds left it caught fire and shut down.

Gage emerged from cover "Well I'll be damned…" he was shocked.

I turned to him quickly, my face contorted into worry "Get back!" I screamed as I jumped toward him, pushing him back into cover. The Sentry Bot exploded and shrapnel hit the other side of the wall we were behind.

When I lifted my head from cover I was inches from his face. He was looking back at me, his expression, again, unreadable. The world seemed to slow for a moment as I felt his breath warm my skin. My heart pounded, I never felt this way being so close to someone "Are you alright?" I finally said. He never broke my gaze, his mouth still a thin line as he nodded up and down. "I'm sorry," I felt my face blush as I pushed myself off of him "It was about to explode and I didn't know what else to do. I didn't mean to jump on you."

"It's fine." He said as he brushed himself off. Sometimes I hated the fact that he showed such little emotion.

"Well," I surveyed the room "It looks like we cleared all the robots out." Pieces of gun barrels and metal parts scattered the floor. I looked up at the screen and saw a movie playing. I felt a thrill when I realized it was a movie I remembered seeing once. Then I saw the projector room. "Let's check that out!" I pointed for Gage so he could see what I was looking at and then made my way to the elevator.

When we got into the room there were holotapes of old movies loaded into the computer. I grinned as I read all the names. When I turned I saw Gage going for the star core. We had been collecting them to get the power armor out of a display case in the star control exhibit. "Wait" I stopped him, knowing that if he pulled that out we wouldn't be able to watch the movie. He paused "Have you ever watched a movie, Gage?"

He thought for a moment "No, Boss, I can't say I have." I smiled at him and his eyebrow went up in worry, reading the expression on my face. "Uh-oh, what is that brain cooking up now?"

I ordered the movies in the secession I wanted them to play in and we made our way back down to the rocket ship booths. I ordered Gage to move one of the rockets front and center of the screen. I went to the bar in back and rummaged around for some snacks.

Gage had laid out our sleeping bags in the rockets and was in his ship, waiting patiently for my return. I set the Nuka choices in front of him "Wild, Victory, or Dark" He picked wild and I made a note of that in my head.

I got comfortable as I opened my cotton candy bites. "You're gonna like this one, it's called _Attack of the Slim_."

"Have you watched these before…?"

I hesitated. I never told Gage my backstory and I didn't know if I wanted to. So, I kept it short "No, but it sounds good…" I felt his eyes on me, but then he turned to the screen.

A few minutes into the movie I felt him staring at me again, then he spoke "Hey, Boss, can I have your ear a minute?"

I didn't pull my eyes away from the screen "Hm…?" I hummed and stuffed some more cotton candy into my mouth.

He didn't start until he had my full attention. I set down my bites and turned to him. _I wish I had a pause button_ , I thought.

"I just wanted to talk to you about the whole Colter, thing. I know we talked about it briefly but I wanted you to _understand_ that I would never turn on you. I'm sure you've thought about that…" He looked at me, his expression slightly embarrassed.

"It's crossed my mind." I said, trying to keep my expression neutral.

He sighed "I figured…" he continued to explain his story. It was hard for him to explain his feelings I could hear it in his slow speech, each word clearly being mulled over in his head before being spoken. "Listen, you aren't like other Raiders I've run with. You're smarter than the rest and…you care, not just about yourself but others. The way you do things is just…different, I've watched." He let out a sigh as he played with the bottle cap in his fingers. "I've had a lot of fun with you these last couple of days." He chuckled, probably remembering todays Nuka-Girl incident. "Ah, fuck, you know what I'm trying to say right, Boss?"

I smiled as I pressed my lips together "I do, Gage."

"Good." He sat back and turned to the screen "Let's finish the movie."

I stared at him a minute longer, watching the light from the screen dance across his face. It may have been a short conversation but it was something I needed to hear.

We finished two movies and when I turned back to Gage he was sleeping. Clearly, he wasn't a movie guy. I reached over and pulled the blanket higher on his body, then snuggled back into my seat.

The next movie started to play as I smiled to myself and took a sip of my Nuka-victory. I felt I deserved it. It was a little victory to finally have my right-hand man open up to me.


	4. Chapter 4: Dry Rock Gulch

My legs were hanging over the side of the Nuka-rocket as I stared up at the glowing planets hanging from the ceiling. The credits of the last movie rolled across the screen as I lay on my back, thinking. I didn't get much sleep as usual. I heard Gage shift throughout the night. I would pretend I was sleeping when he sat up to survey the area and make sure nothing was around.

I have been thinking about the Common Wealth lately. I wondered how the settlements were doing or what my companions must've thought when they couldn't find me in the morning. Were any of them searching for me? I keep telling myself it doesn't matter anymore but it's hard. As much as I wanted to think like a raider I couldn't bring myself to be so malicious. I had to try. I couldn't let the raider gangs and more importantly, Gage, find out the kind of person I really was.

The credits ended and the screen cut to black so I figured it was time to get up. As soon as I got out of my rocket I saw Gages body lift as well, I wondered if he had been up thinking too and didn't want to move in case he woke me.

"Morn'n, Boss." He said as he adjusted his armor.

"Morning, Gage." I said absently.

"Everything all right?" He questioned.

"Yeah, just didn't get much sleep" I answered as I unfolded the Nuka-World map. "Dry Rock Gulch is next."

"You got it." He continued to study me as I pushed past him.

I wanted to share my feelings with him but I knew I couldn't. Which made me feel horrible for not being completely honest with him, like he was with me. I swallowed the guilt as we went to the flag pole.

"So...I just pick a gang?" I asked timidly, trying to figure out which gang I disliked the least.

"Yup. We put up the flag and they move in. This will keep them from being at each other's throats." He was leaning against the wall, arms crossed.

I tried to think. The operators were the first to come to my mind. Level headed, seemed to be looking toward the future of the park, so I figured they would handle all the tech in Galactic zone the best. I raised the flag with no comment from Gage and we were on to the next park.

When we approached the gates we were greeted with a large sign that said "Beware if blood worms!" I squinted at it and turned to Gage "what's a blood worm?" As soon as I finished my question a large worm shot from the ground between me and Gage. I drew my pistol and shot it twice, midair.

It landed dead in front of us. "That's a blood worm." He responded as we both examined it.

Before we had a chance to move forward the ground shook underneath us. I quickly looked up at Gage a shocked express on my face "I don't think we're done yet!"

They dug up from the ground like sprouting plants. We were battling off 3 or 4 of them. One jumped at me and I shot directly down its open mouth. When we finally cleared the front entrance we stayed alert as we entered the park.

We walked a few feet before being greeted by a protectron. "Hello…?" I approached it slowly not sure if it would attack us like all the robots in Galactic Zone.

"Hello, partner, Welcome to Dry Rock Gulch." it still had a robotic tone as it tried to sound like a cowboy.

We shared a short conversation about the blood worm infestation, then I was assigned the Sheriff and sent on a mission to help the other protectrons around the fake old western town. It handed me a cowboy uniform and I quickly turned on my heels to face Gage. My mouth was hanging open in a huge smile.

He looked at me and before he could say anything I ran to a building and got changed.

When I was done I kicked the door open, walking out wide legged and resting my hands on my belt buckle. Gage was shaking his head "Come on, Boss."

I looked at him and squinted my eyes "I don't know nothing about this 'boss' busy." I spoke in a horrible western accent "I am the Sheriff of this here town and we have a varmint problem. I'm going to need my Deputy to have a clear mind for this."

Gage stared at me for a second and then shook his head "Alright, Boss, that's funny. Now, let's get that silly costume off and let's keep moving."

"I think you look good, part-ner." The protectron complemented me.

Gage swatted him away "Don't encourage this."

"Sorry." He responded as he turned and walked back his spot by the entrance.

"Come on, Deputy, where is your uniform?" I walked closer to him, the spurs on my cowboy boots jingling as I walked, and gave him a once over.

"I ain't no, Deputy, now stop playing around."

I broke character when I saw how stubborn he was being. I looked up at him doe eyed "Oh, Gage, please! This will be _way_ more fun if you play along. You have the accent and everything!"

Gage's eyebrows were slanted, his face toward the sky "I'm not playing any games."

"Pretty please?" I grabbed his hands. My touch made him flush and look down at my grip around his large hands "I'm the only one who will see you being silly and I promise I won't tell a single soul!" we made eye contact, my eyes pleading "Please…" I never broke our stare.

"Fine…" he huffed "but I'm only wearing the hat" I cheered as he dipped his head and placed a black cowboy hat on his head "Alright, Sheriff, who needs our help first?"

I smiled and quickly jumping back into character "A local rancher needs help collecting his horse. Be on the lookout for those nasty blood worms too!" I yee-hawed as we moved forward.

We went from robot to robot completing the silly missions and killing any blood worms in sight. I was having so much fun I almost forgot what/where I was. Besides the giant killer worms and serving skeletons Nuka- wild, it felt like there was no apocalypse. It was just Gage and I at the park enjoying the attractions. I would watch Gage when he didn't think I was looking and seeing him smile, really smile and have fun, made my heart pound. It happened a lot when I looked at him. The feeling of my limbs going numb for a second, my breath catching in my chest as I felt so happy to have him happy and near me.

Once we finished clearing out the park, including _Mad Mulligan's Mine,_ we went back to the Saloon and had Dr. Phosphate serve us some drinks. I had picked up some tables and chairs, trying to clean up the place. When I was done I joined Gage on the bar stool next to him as Doc slid a Nuka-Wild my way.

"Well, you done good today, Deputy." I joked, he smiled but continued to look down at his drink. I watched him for a second, he looked lost in his thoughts. I leaned in to him nudging him with my shoulder "You alright?"

"Yeah…Yeah I'm good." He hesitated "I'm just…thinking, is all."

"About what?" I tried to act casual as I took a sip of my drink.

"About you…" I held my breath "You aren't afraid to take what you want, and do what you want. I just wonder why ya do it. What do you get out of this?"

I thought for a second. That was a good questions really. Why? I lost my son, my family and left the new life I had made for myself and here I was. Sitting in an old beat up amusement park bar, with my right hand that helped me control a whole raider gang. My life seemed to always take these turns that I never expect. So, honestly, I didn't know why. "Do I need a reason?"

"I suppose not." He continued to tell me how he felt about this world we inhabited. How he thought raiders were dumb and how they just "take, take, take" and abuse everything.

I saw this inner conflict in him. A Raider calling other raiders idiots. It was really ironic. Then he told me about his family and it made sense. He seemed to be a lot like me. The inner struggle of what's right and what you have to do. It broke my heart to hear that he ran away from home and left his parents to fend for themselves. I saw the pain in his eyes when I asked them where they were, and he responded with an insincere comment. He didn't mean it, but what else was he supposed to say? He was tough. He had been through a lot and that was the only way he could explain his feelings, by pushing down the pain and pretending nothing hurt him.

"I'm sorry, Gage," I touched his shoulder. As I signaled Doc so get him another drink.

"It's fine. The point of this story was that I feel like you… get it. Whatever you went through, however you got here, you can relate. I'm grateful for that… for you."

I let that comment sink in. My hand froze on his shoulder. I was feeling a mixture of happiness and pain. The fact that he appreciated having me around sent my heart thudding, again. Then the sting from the fact that I have told him nothing about myself and my past. He trusted me, he felt comfortable sharing his opinions and story with me and all he knew was my name. He never asked either. Knowing that it wasn't his place and that I would hopefully…tell him in time. My heart sunk into my boots knowing that I would probably never tell him my true story and identity.

Gage saw that I was lost in thought. He lurched forward trying to bury his face in his bottle. "I'm sorry to make it weird, or whatever." He chugged the rest of his drink and got off the bar stool. "We should find a place to stay the night."

I watched him standing in the door frame looking out at the town. I walked up behind him. "Thank you, Gage." I said as I looked up at him. He looked down at me and then away as a small smile spread across his face.

"No problem, Boss."


	5. Chapter 5: Safari Adventure

It was my stupid idea. We had finished in Dry Rock Gulch early and deeming it unsafe to stay the night we moved on to Safari Adventure. It was dark and it had started to rain. It was dangerous to travel to an unfamiliar place during these conditions. Gage had told me to reconsider but me being the brilliant Overboss ordered him to listen to me. He didn't fight with me and because of that we were running in the dark away from some creature that ambushed us as soon as we walked into the front gates.

Neither of us got a good look at what it was before it clawed at Gage. It made a gash in his stomach. He writhed in pain as I tried to think of a plan. That's when I looked up and saw the tree house. "Up there, come on, Gage!"

I grabbed his elbow trying to help him along. He was clutching his stomach and wincing in pain as we made our way through the maze. The rain was coming down and the thunder cracked in the sky above us. "Left, right, follow the arches towards the tree!" I was barking orders as the roar from the irritated monster continued to follow behind us.

We made it to the elevator and I helped him on it. He was on the floor, unable to stay standing. I clicked the button rapidly "come on, come on." I was hysterical as I saw the bushes moving as the monster approached. I flashed my light on its face as it made its way around the corner, it looked like a mutated alligator. Its claw lunged forward again and I squeezed my eyes shut waiting for it to strike me. I opened my one eye when I didn't feel anything. I watched the thing grow smaller as the elevator took us up.

I threw my head back sinking to the floor with Gage as I let out a sigh. He grunted and it brought me back to the task at hand. I bent closer to him to get a better look at his wound. He was bleeding badly. I felt my heart thudding faster "oh, God, Gage." I tried to stay calm as the elevator stopped and I dragged him out on to the floor.

I worked quickly, stripping him of his armor, and shirt. The cut was deep. I fumbled with my bag bringing out blood packs, gauges, stimpaks, and any other medication I had collected on my travels. I didn't realize it but tears were streaming down my face "it's alright, Gage, I'm here. I'll take care of this." My hands didn't stop moving as I worked to patch the wound.

"its fine, Boss. You don't have to take care of me. I've been caring for myself for a long time now." He protested.

"Shut up, Gage." I said frantically as I injected a stimpak in him.

He grunted again "it hurts too much, Boss. I don't think I can hold out much longer."

I looked at him as his eyes started to flutter "Porter..." I kept working, my eyes darting in between tending his wound and him "Porter please stay with me. STAY WITH ME. I'm going to take care of you now. You don't have to do anything alone, you have me."

"Porter…?" he said softly and then he passed out from the pain but I kept working. I was not going to lose him.

The storm had died down when I finished. I wrapped him in a sleeping bag and let him rest. I lit some lanterns that I found in the tree house. I took a breath, realizing I finally had a chance to breathe. I rubbed my neck as I watched Gage rest quietly. He looked different without his eye patch and heavy equipment on him. I looked closely at him now. Laying so innocently.

I reached out and gently traced the lines on his face. Each line filled with wisdom brought on by a harsh lesson. And his eye; where a line that was light pink from the rest of his skin stretched across his face. A permanent reminder of his first gang he ran with. He carried the burden of his life, I could tell. Even if he didn't want to admit it. I laid down next to him propping myself up with my elbow, my arm arched around his head. I stroked his Mohawk as I admired him.

He was strong, a stable, solid being in such an unstable world. He grew into that though. Based on what he told me he was scared when he was young. He ran away from his home because he couldn't see his parents being treated like that anymore and he was too afraid to stand up to the Raiders, so he became one. If only the Minutemen were stronger than, maybe he could've joined the cause and helped his family. When you're backed into a corner, like he was, with only a few options to choose from, you have to make tough calls. I know how this world can make you feel. Helpless and hopeless at times. He only had two options, stay or run. I know what I would pick.

I fell asleep curled up next to him so I would be close if he needed me. Thoughts of a young Gage swirling in my head.

"Boss..." I heard Gage call to me in a gruff low tone.

I woke up slowly and then all at once when I realized he needed me. "Yes, I'm here, what do you need?"

He just looked at me for a moment and then spoke "you fixed me up?" He still seemed a little dazed.

"I told you I would." I continued to look at him.

"Why did you do that? Risk your own life to save mine. You should've just left me." He looked away now.

"I told you I had your back. I could never..." I paused thinking about how horrible it would've been to leave him there to get ripped a part "ever leave you."

"Boss..." He was gazing more intently at me now. He still seemed confused that someone could care for him in a way. His lips were parted and I stared at them feeling myself move closer. He tried to fight his body that was lifting his lips closer to mine like a magnetic pull. "Boss, what are we doing?" he said it in a whisper as our lips were inches from each other. We were so close we shared the same breath.

"Shut up, Gage" I said with a half-smile as our lips pressed together.

His bottom lip fit with mine perfectly as we held it there for a moment. I bit his bottom lip as we pulled away slowly his lip coming with mine as we parted. We looked at each other and held our gaze for a second as we kissed again.

I brought my hand to his cheek, lightly resting it there, as we kissed repeatedly. Our breathing became heavy as our kisses grew faster. It was something that both of us had been fighting for a long time now. He couldn't move much, still in a little pain. He winced "I'm sorry did I hurt you" I adjusted myself so I wasn't laying on his stomach.

"Don't you dare move" he said in a low raspy voice. I watched his eyes move around my face, taking in every feature. We continued to kiss.

I pulled away kissing his neck and chest. My lips lightly touching his skin with such gentleness. I hadn't gotten a chance to really enjoy the fact that he was laying shirtless in front of me. I lightly traced my hands around his chest muscles. I couldn't see his abs as they were covered with the badges I had treated him with. I moved lower tracing the lines by his groin. I stopped as they continued under his pants. I looked at his face, his eyes were closed savoring my touch. I smiled to myself at the fact that he enjoyed my touch so much.

I moved back to his face as I stroked it lightly with my finger. We were connected again by our gaze "you should get some rest" I lightly kissed his lips again. "I'll be right here."

His face crinkled in pain as he slowly moved his arm around me. He rested his large heavy hand on the small of my back and pushed me closer to him. I entwined my legs in his as I fell asleep beside him. It was the first time in a long time that I slept soundly.

I felt a warm drop of something hit my cheek and then slide down my face. I clenched my face in confusion. Then I felt it again, a few more times. When I woke up a shirtless man was towering over me with the severed bloody head of one of those crocodile looking creatures. I sat up and scurried backward out of the way of the dripping blood. "What the fuck?" I said wiping the drops from my face.

The man just looked back at me. His face inquisitive. He sent down the creature and slowly approached me. He turned his head as he studied me. Gage was waking up now and tried to get up to attack the strange man. He winced in pain. "Hey, get away from her!" he went for his gun.

"Wait, Gage!" I stopped him. The man touched my cheek. Then his own face as if making the connection that we were of the same species.

"I Cito." He touched his chest as he looked at me, his face relaxing. "It been long time since I see another person or girl before."

"Hi…" I said. "Where are you from?"

It took him a second to respond "I live here. Family in trouble from monster. Cito try to kill monster but Cito one man. Cito not strong enough." He pointed to the dead animal.

I worked out what he was trying to tell me for a few moments. Then he wanted me to go with him. I wanted revenge on these mutant things after they had hurt Gage, so I agreed to help.

"Where are you going?!" again Gage tried to get up but clutched his wound. "You can't go out there with those things, I don't give a fuck who this guy is…"

"Come on, Gage. I'll be fine. We have to do this anyway if we want the parked cleared. You need to rest." He was gripping my hand as we made eye contact. I didn't break it, showing him that I could handle it.

He sighed, shutting his eyes and hanging his head "Alright, fine." He eyed the shirtless jungle man who was waiting for me by the elevator. "Just be careful…and no funny business."

I followed his gaze to Cito and then chuckled "Wow, Gage. I didn't take you for a jealous type."

He flushed "I'm not. That's not what I meant." He grumbled before going to lay back down "I'm just worried about you is all."

I smiled and then leaned down to kiss him. I kissed him with everything I had and bit his lip as I pulled away. He grinned "You don't need to worry." I kissed his cheek softly one last time and went to the elevator. We stared at each other until we were no longer visible. It was time to focus.

When I was finally done darkness was starting to cover the park. I was tired, bloody and beaten but the Gatorclaws were taken care of. Cito had reconnected with his family, which turned out to be a group of Gorilla's, and everything was right with the world…well as right as it can be in the abandon apocalyptic amusement park world.

All I wanted to do now was see Gage. I knew I would feel better than. I always did after being with him. When I made it to the tree house he had gotten himself to the bench that was on a small patio overlooking the park. I walked over to him and smiled "Is this seat taken?"

He smiled and I sat down. He pulled me to him so I was laying on his chest. We were silent for a few moments as we watched the sun set over the horizon. One positive thing about this new world was that the sunsets seemed more beautiful. Probably the radiation causing the vivid color. I felt his lips kiss the top of my head and I grinned as I craned my neck up to look at him. I lived for the normalcy of these moments. I wanted so badly to live in this tree house forever with him and not worry about anything. Not worry about the raider gang that I led, or the fact that I had no one and nothing to fight for in this world.

We went to lay back down as the sky went black. He held me clothes, our bodies pressed together, and legs tangled up with each other. I caressed his back lightly as his breathing steadied and he fell asleep. I followed shortly after, falling asleep to the sound of his heart beat.


	6. Chapter 6: Party in Nuka-Town USA

My eyes blinked open slowly as I tried to figure out where I was. Gage was still gripping me to him and I smiled as I studied his sleeping face. I gently pulled his arm away from me as I got up. I walked to the balcony and looked out at the park. A small grin spread across my face as I tried to image the park restored to its original self. I closed my eyes almost hearing the families laughing as they walked the park together, happy to finally have made it Nuka-World.

Suddenly, I felt Gage's hands around my waist "Good morning."

I jumped as I turned to face him "Good morning, how are you feeling?"

"Better, thanks to you. What were you thinking about?" his hands slipped from my waist and gripped the handle bar as he looked out at the park.

"Nothing I was just…" I hesitated "just wondering what this place was like…before the bomb."

"It's hard to say, probably just some money scam." He chuckled.

I looked at him a little upset. "Well, I think it was a place that people could go and escape from their mundane life for a while. A place they could bring their family and make memories." I looked back at the horizon staring at one spot angrily.

"Whoa, Whoa, I'm sorry, Boss." I rolled my eyes "I didn't realize how passionate you felt about this." I felt the sarcasm drip from his lips "I thought this was a rhetorical question, not something I would get my ass chewed out for."

I ignored him "It is something I'm passionate about. I think it would be a good idea to re-open the park. Rebuild and have it be a place people can go to escape from this shitty world." He laughed so hard, harder then I'd ever seen him do before "I'm serious!"

"And how do you propose we do that?" he said wiping a tear from his eye. I just stared at him. "Oh, come on, Boss. Do you know what that would entail? Hundreds of hours of work and resources and not to mention the whole city of raiders you lead would have to find a new home." He swatted his hands at me and went to pack up.

I was furious now. The fact that he blew off my idea like I was insane really bothered me "Well maybe they could get their act together and help rebuild, instead of laying around like trash. Don't you realize the money we could make if we reopened the park? We know where the generator is to get the lights working. It would stimulate the Commonwealth, provide hundreds of jobs and bring in tons of caps for us. We could keep the market the same so travelers can still come and use it as a trade post."

"You think you can convince those animals to do this? You're talking crazy. It's not going to happen."

Who did he think he was? I'm the Overboss. I call the shots. Well, maybe I was taking this new position a little too seriously. "Well, frankly" I shouldn't have said what I said but it just burst from my mouth like water from a broken damn "I think it's being _wasted_ now."

He stopped packing and turned to me. He didn't say anything as he approached me. I stood my ground "Don't make me regret fighting to put you in charge. Now, stop talking stupid and lets go. We have two more parks to clear."

I was so mad. I grabbed my bag in a huff and made my way to the elevator and descended to the ground without waiting for Gage. My body was shaking in rage. It felt like the nights in the tree house didn't even matter. What was I thinking? He didn't give a shit about me. I was realizing that I was just a puppet and Gage was pulling the strings.

We cleaned out the bottling plant quickly. The only thing infesting that park were mirelurks. We split up and took down most of the monsters separately. I missed having him by my side but I didn't like being dependent on someone else. I gave the park to the Operators. I didn't wait for Gage's opinion on the decision. I did what I thought was best because _I_ was the boss.

We didn't speak as we cleared Kiddie Kingdom. What a nightmare. Not only was I fighting with Gage but the park was being protected by some guy who tried to kill us with radiation. It spewed from a pipe system that was all over the park. We moved from one building to the next trying to shut off the toxic mist. This guy was everywhere and knew the park like the back of his hand.

Finally we made it to the top of the castle. We confronted the mask man. He was a ghoul but before he turned into one of those hideous creatures he was a person. I had read the terminals. He use to work at the park and him and his friends were working when the bomb hit. He had to watch his friends turn into flesh eating monsters one by one. I couldn't imagine how that felt. He spoke highly of his girlfriend. Told us she was out there trying to find the cure to this horrible disease and he wasn't going to let anyone in his home. He promised her he would keep it safe.

 _Rachel… Rachel_ I thought. That name sounded so familiar. _Wait, I knew where the name as from._ I dug in my bag and pulled out the holotape I had found when exploring Bradberton. I stretched my arm towards him "I think you need to hear this."

"Stop wasting our time and just kill the bastard." Gage whispered from behind me. I ignored him.

"I'm sorry, Oswald." I tried to comfort him after I saw the defeat on his face.

"How…how could I let this happen? I should've went with her. Now…now she is gone and I will never see her again." I felt my heart ache for him. I knew too well the pain of losing a loved one.

"Oswald. You can't blame yourself. I heard the way she spoke about you in her holotape. You both had to do what had to be done. The important thing is that…you both knew how much you loved one another." I looked down as I saw Gage from the corner of my eye.

"You're right. I'm going to go and finish what Rachel started. I will find the cure in her memory. Thank you, I'm sorry for misjudging you, take these in apologize. I will take my friends and leave this place in your capable hands. Thank you again."

Then, just like that, he vanished. I stood idol as my words sunk in. They loved _each other_. I wish I had that luxury… to love and be loved. I turned and walked past Gage "Let's go."

He grabbed my arm "Wait. What are we doing here, Boss?"

"What does it look like? Clearing the parks." I said sarcastically. I didn't make eye contact.

"No, us. I don't know about you but I didn't forget that night in the tree house. The kiss we shared."

"You don't have to worry about that. I know you don't feel the same way, just consider it forgotten. I know how this relationship works. I'm just the face as you call the shots."

"What are you talking about? I…I thought that..."

"Gage, just stop. I'm hurt enough." I tugged my arm away but he wouldn't let go "Gage please just-" I was cut off by the feeling of his lips on mine. When he pulled away I just looked at him "Wha…what?"

"I want to be with you, if you want to be with this old, stubborn asshole, who is sorry for how he acted." His face flushed as he looked at the floor. "When you took care of me in Adventureland I…well let's just say I hadn't experienced that care from someone before. This whole time I had felt close to you but I figured you wouldn't want to be with some washed up raider like me."

"Gage…I…" I was staring at him searching for what to say.

"I've never met someone like you. The way you think, and act is just something I have to get used to. You're smarter than anyone I've talked to and I just…it's kind of intimidating." He scratched the back of his head. "Your plan about re opening the park is a good one and I'm willing to talk more about it with you…if you'll forgive me." I didn't say anything, just looked at him "Listen, I've never done anything like this before. If you don't feel the same way, I understand. I can be a real hard head sometimes and I always think I'm right but I would try. Who knows it probably wouldn't even have worked out and I don't know I just-"

I interrupted him, a huge smile spreading across my face "Shut up, Gage." Then I planted my lips on his. The usual spark ignited the feelings that flew through my body. We kissed repeatedly.

When we pulled away he looked at me his face lit up "Wow, Boss." I giggled and kissed him again "I don't want to get all sappy but…I feel like I've found a piece of me that had been missing for a long time. Thank you."

I felt the tears in my eyes and tried to fight them off "I feel the same way, Gage. Let's go home." We shared a smile and then went on our way out of the park. I was in such a daze I didn't really think before I picked The Pack to run this park.

We approached the Nuka-town USA gates. I was latched on to his arm as we walked side by side. It had been a long time since I had felt this way about someone. As much as I enjoyed this feeling, it scared me.

When we walked in we were greeted by The Pack and the Operators. They were all pooled together in a huge conglomerate as they cheered and chanted _Overboss, Overboss._ I was in shock. I walked through the crowd trying to get to fizztop. They slapped me on the back and cheered for finally having the whole park to themselves. Gage followed closely behind me as a huge party irrupted. Music blared through the speakers, and everyone was dancing and yelling.

I was laughing uncontrollably as I finally pulled myself from the mob of people. I couldn't find Gage, but before I could try to look I was confronted by Nisha. She got in my face, hooking the collar of my shirt in her fist "I warned you." She was furious and spoke between gritted teeth "I _warned_ you not to get in the way of my group and you fucked us over."

I gave her a disgusted face "What are you talking about?"

"You know damn well what I'm talking about." She released me and pointed to the party in the middle of Nuka-town. "Those idiots all got a piece of this park and what did you give my people?! One measly little area. You didn't even try, you never liked me from the start." She got in my face again "I knew this would happen, so I prepared myself. I will destroy you."

Suddenly, Gage released himself from the crowd laughing and then he stopped when he saw Nisha. He quickly strode toward us and got in front of me, towering over the angry woman "Is there a problem?"

It was cute that he wanted to protect me. She gave him a devious smile as she peeked around to glare at me one last time before walking away "…just congratulating the Overboss on a job well done."

When she was out of eye sight he turned to me "You ok?" I nodded "Well" he pointed to the celebrating raiders "This is all thanks to you, how does it feel to be adored?"

I stared absently at the group of misfits. I wanted to be happy but what was I really doing here? Now that the park was in full control of the gangs what was left? What about the rest of these people? I've tried _so_ hard to be like them, trying to convince myself that I was a shameless marauder but it's not me. I realized that everything I had done on this journey out of the vault was what I had to do. I saved so many people by choosing the path I did and no matter how heavy the guilt I carried of the lives lost, there was nothing I could do about that. I am made up of the people I've met, loved and lost and they are all good souls, not pillaging raiders that show no mercy. Preston, Nick, Piper are all people fighting for justice and for the people of the Commonwealth. I realized now I'm more like them then the people that surround me now. I just can't believe it took me this long to realize. Now I'm worried I am stuck here. Then I looked at Gage. My heart thudded. Maybe this was the reason I was here, destiny pulled me to him.

I remembered the look in Gage's eye when I said what we were doing here was a waste. If I decided to leave…or take the offer from that slave in the market place, would he follow?

He saw that I was lost in my thoughts as he lifted my chin with his thumb and forefinger. I looked into his eyes "you want to join the party or go up to bed?" He brushed my hair behind my ear. I closed my eyes as I felt his finger caress my face. I brought my hand to his and pushed his palm firmly against my cheek. This is what I wanted. I wanted him. This strong and sturdy man. He would protect and be with me no matter what, I was sure of that.

I opened my eyes and looked deeply into his "I want to go to bed...together."

I saw his face flush as he started to stutter "I...well...whatever you want boss."

"I want you" I said as I got on my tippy toes and pressed my lips to his. We kissed rapidly as our breath became heavy. I giggled as we raced to the elevator. As we ascended up we continued to hold each other, our lips never separating. We pulled off our armor. The first to go was his eye patch so that could see his full face without any obstruction. My hands explored his body and tugged on his belt buckle. We stumbled off the elevator and continued our rampage to the bed.

We were laughing uncontrollably in between kisses. Probably in pure shock that this was finally happening. I threw him on the bed and took off his shirt. His exposed muscles stared back at me. I gentle traced the scar from the gator claw attack. He watched my fingertips. Then we looked back at each other. My heart was thudding so fast it ached. We were both transported back to our first kiss in the tree house. The first time in a long time he was vulnerable and I was there to love him and not abuse him like the people of his past.

I stepped out of my last article of clothing and stood before him with nothing but a smile. "My God..." He whispered. I laughed and jumped on top of him.

Our hips moved rhythmically together. No matter what happened to the world, the one thing that never changed was sex and it felt so good. Sweat rolled off of his muscles. I arched my back as my pleasure sky rocketed. I clung to him as his energy flowed from him into me.

Our breathing became steady again. I looked up at him as he held himself above me. I touched his cheek "I love you, Gage."

I said it and didn't immediately feel regret like times before. I didn't even need a response I just needed him to know.

Then I watched his serious expression on his mouth cruel up at the corners. "I love you too...Boss." we laughed as I smacked his chest playfully.

We laid together as I watched him sleep. I had a smile on my face as I lightly caressed his arm. He was beautiful. The night cloaked the area around us, except for the few candles we lit around the bed. It was finally quite beneath us as the population of Nuka-World was partying in the center of Nuka-Town USA. I figured I would be lost in my thoughts but I wasn't. In this moment laying here with Gage, listening to the party irrupting in the streets, I was happy. I snuggled into the crook of Gage's neck and fell asleep.

When my eyes fluttered open I felt cold and realized Gage wasn't next to me. I quickly sat up "Porter?!" He was by the bar, getting his clothes back on. He grabbed two ceramic mugs.

He smiled at my panic "I'm right here, Boss" he grabbed the cups and walked over. He placed one knee on the bed as he knelt down to kiss me good morning.

"Where are you going?" I pouted like a 5 year old.

He chuckled again "Why are you so cute?" he kissed me again "I'm getting you your favorite drink in the morning."

"Whisky, good call." I said sarcastically as I threw on a big Nuka World t-shirt. I walked up to him and hugged him from behind, pressing my hands firmly against his chest. "Let's just stay here all day."

I felt his low chuckle vibrate his chest "I wish we could, lots of work to do."

I grunted as I released him "Let's at least enjoy our coffee first."

"You got it, Boss." He winked at me. Planting one last kiss on my cheek, he ascended to the ground and made his way to the café.

I walked out on the elevator and looked out on the town. Everything was back to normal. The party was over. I looked down and saw the disciples sharping their knives and polishing their guns. I felt a small ping in my chest. Then out walked there leader. She looked up at me and smiled. She brought her thumb across her neck as she laughed deviously. I watched her make her way to Gage's direction. My heart was pounding. _What was she planning?!_ I quickly got dressed, getting ready for a fight.


	7. Chapter 7: The Truth

When the elevator reached the bottom, I was confronted by two disciples. "Hey, OB." They approached me and stopped inches from my face. One started to shove me. "Going out for a walk?" The other one laughed manically, making a snarky comment. "Let's go for a walk together, shall we?"

I felt my fist tighten. I was sick of being bossed around and not taken seriously. I felt the one hook their hand under my arm and start to pull me away. I ripped myself from her grip and in one swift punch knocked her out cold.

She hit the dirt as the other Disciple stepped back, her mouth hanging open in shock "Send this message to your leader." I quickly ran from the scene still surprised at my actions. I looked back to see the girl dragging her back to their camp.

I raced out on to the dirt road of Nuka World. I was out front of the café in seconds. I frantically looked around. Nisha was nowhere in sight. Static was clouding my head as my thoughts raced. I focused in on the buildings. _Maybe she was watching me. Ready to snipe me down._ Their taunting and malicious laughter was echoing in and out of my ears. I rubbed my temples. Suddenly, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned on my heels and gripped the knife that was strapped to my thigh. It was Gage.

He was holding two cups of coffee and smiling, my panic immediately faded when I saw him. He noticed my expression and inquired "Boss...are you alright?"

"Have you seen Nisha around?" I was looking past him, standing on my tippy toes to see behind him.

"No..." I saw his shoulders hunch in concern "why? Is she bothering you, again?"

I brought my attention back to Gage's worried face. "I just heard she wanted to apologize to me...for the other night." I wasn't very convincing because his expression did not change. I touched his arm "Gage, its fine. I promise." We looked into each other's eyes. I felt my body relax as I thought about his lips on the tender parts of my body.

"If you say so." He watched me a few moments longer and then handed me the second mug he was holding. "You're coffee, Boss" I accepted it gratefully.

I took a sip and stared at him from the rim of my mug "you're in a good mood" I said suggestively.

His face turned a light shade of pink as he covered his smirk with his cup "is it really that obvious?" I nodded, feeling my stomach flutter in excitement. I really liked that I made him act this way. He chuckled "the raider at the counter did give me a strange look when I tipped him for the free coffee..."

I giggled and took another sip of caffeine. Suddenly, I heard footsteps crushing the gravel behind me and shifted my eyes to the side. I took a deep breath as two Operators chatted past me. I relaxed. I felt Gage staring at me again "Boss…you would tell me if something was wrong."

"Of course, yes. I'm just as little wired today. Caffeine hits me fast." He nodded and took another sip. "Well…what do we have planned today?"

"Ah, that's right. Follow me." He set his ceramic cup on the pillar next to the café and started walking toward the main entrance.

I watched his hand swing from his side. I wanted so badly to lace my fingers between his. I needed him. Right now. I reached out and lightly touched his hand. He quickly angled his head to my touch. He flushed as he paused for a moment. I felt him squeeze my hand once and then throw it down. A quick ping of pain shot through my chest. I know he didn't mean it. He just didn't want everyone knowing about us. Now yet a least, but it still hurt to be rejected. I was vulnerable all the time, when I shouldn't be.

We approached the front gates where a dark man in a long trench coat and cowboy hat was waiting for us. I squinted my eyes. At first glance it looked just like Preston. When we got closer it looked more like an evil twin. This man's eyes were cold and ruthless. He had no warmth to him.

"Boss, this is Shank." Gage stepped aside to let me walk forward.

He stretched out his hand and I involuntarily shied away "You ready to start making the plans?"

I looked at Gage who continued to stare at Shank. I looked back to the man "I'm sorry….plans to rebuild the park?"

A deep throaty chuckle came from his mouth "That's funny. No. Now that we have full control of the park and we have more power and resources, it's time to expand past these old amusement park walls."

"Expand…" I was still confused.

"To the Commonwealth." He looked at me, starting to get annoyed at my cluelessness.

I felt my heart drop to my feet. I looked at him wide-eyed. _The Commonwealth?_

He continued to talk "There are tons of small established settlements ready for the taking. I understand that they've been provided with help from the Minute Men and an anonymous stranger but their trail went cold a while ago." Again, my stomach twitched _Me_ I thought. "So, we have two options. One, talk to them nicely and give them the chance to leave or Two, my favorite, threaten them with life or death and force them to work for us."

The rest of the conversation was coming in muffled. I didn't understand. Gage told me he wanted to consider rebuilding the park and here we were discussing the takeover of the Commonwealth…. _my Commonwealth._ All my hard work. All of those innocent families trying to survive and I was supposed to threaten them and have this gang of horrible raiders beat them into submission?! My second panic attack in less than 10 minutes.

I looked toward Gage, who still wouldn't make eye contact with me because he knew how I would feel about this. He just stood their like a stone wall, arms crossed and nodding at these insane plans this evil Preston was laying out for us.

Heart pounding, palms sweating, head spinning I stopped him mid-sentence "just…just _shut the fuck up!"_ I screamed. I turned to Gage "how dare you. How DARE YOU go behind my back and plan this meeting."

He quickly grabbed my shoulders and pulled me to the side "thank you, Shank, we will get back to you on all that" Shank nodded and walked away, a look of concern on his face. Gage hunched down to my level "what the hell do you think you're doing? You can't go freaking out on people like Shank. It will cause talk and suspicion of your intention among the other gangs."

I was furious " _my intentions,_ were to rebuild this park. You said you would consider and here you are pulling me into this meeting without my knowledge."

"Calm down, I just want you to have all your options before you make any decisions."

"Bullshit. He was talking to me as if that were the only option. Remember when you told me how you detested these Raiders for always _taking_ and never knowing when to stop? You're being one of them right now. You have this whole place to yourself. Why go out and destroy people who are just trying to rebuild their lives?"

"If I didn't know any better it would sound like you're choosing them over _us._ " He said 'us' as if he were talking about our relationship and not the Raiders.

"I'm choosing to be a decent human being. What about your family, Gage? Don't you remember the pain you felt seeing them get abused by Raiders day in and day out? Now, you're going to be just like them? That's disgusting."

"Hey" he pointed a finger inches from my face "I told you I left because I _never_ wanted to be like them. Here I am. I'm a Raider now. I've made it. It's too bad for all those other saps who chose to stay and be victims. It's the circle of life."

I felt the blood pumping through my veins. He was such a talker. Knowing exactly what I wanted to hear and feeding me lies. He didn't believe in rebuilding the world like I did. It was all just bullshit. "I'm not discussing this anymore. _I am_ the over Boss and you're just my bitch!"

The look in Gage's eye was vicious after I said that. "Now, Boss…I wouldn't be talking like that if I was you." He reached out and I pulled away.

Gage just looked at me. I watched his eyebrows furrow in concern and that's when I realized I was crying. I've always been one to wear my emotions on my sleeve. It wasn't just the salty droplets that were slipping from my eyes but also the pain and betrayal I felt in that moment. He saw it too. We were both frozen in time for a second and then out of embarrassment I wiped my eyes with my arm and stormed passed him "You fucking bastard. _Don't_ follow me." I ran out of the gates trying to ignore the eyes that followed. Trying to block out the whispers from the Gang members who would soon come to find that I didn't care about them as much as they thought.

I walked the perimeter for a few hours just thinking about my life. I realized that I carry a lot of guilt on my back. All the lives I've taken with my bare hands. I looked down at my glove covered fingers and watched the pools of blood spread over them. I shook away the image trying not to let my imagination get the best of me.

I also thought about my family, a lot. If I was ever going to meet with them again in Heaven. Or if I would be banished to purgatory forever. Was there still a Heaven and Hell, even if there was an apocalypse happening here on earth, did it happen in the afterlife too? Experiencing an overload from taking in all those innocent lives that were lost throughout the world.

My thoughts were quickly interrupted by the sound of a bullet shooting past me. I found cover and when I had the opportunity I went to survey who was targeting me. There was a trailer in the middle of the barren parking lot, a Gunner at his camp sight. I drew my gun and started to move closer to him, taking cover when needed. "Put down your weapon." I tried to reason with him. Another gun shot rang through the parking lot walls. "Please, Sir, put down the gun. If you continue to shoot I will have to kill you."

I was close enough now to take him down. I was breathing heavy as I struggled to take aim "Dammit, I do not want to kill you, but you're leaving me no choice" I gripped my gun as I tried to take deep breaths. Suddenly, I felt a sharp stinging in my arm. I dropped my gun as I cursed "mother fucker" he had shot me in my bicep. I dug in my pack for a stimpack and with one swift move stabbed it into my arm, more grunts in pain followed. I felt my anger boiling. Why the fuck wouldn't he just listen to me. I removed from cover, releasing bullets in his direct. In a few moments the gunner had fallen from his perch and was dead.

I disarmed as I threw back my head, screaming to the sky. I felt myself burst into tears, followed by moans of anguish. It had been a long time since I had cried so hard and heavy. I approached the dead body and started to search him "I told you." I continued to cry "I told you I would do it. You stupid fuck. _You_ made me kill you. This is _your_ fault." He only had a few bullets and a stimpack on him. I swiped them both and kept moving. I felt I was losing myself, day by day. My anxiety building and swallowing me whole. The constant tug of war I experienced inside of myself was mounting and I could tell I wouldn't be able to keep it in any longer.

I approached a Red Rocket gas station and sat down to stare at it. I heard an engine on the horizon and turned my head to the sound. It was a beautiful red car with chrome finishing. Inside was a nuclear family; one boy, one girl and mom and dad pulled up to the building. The mom and daughter went inside as the boy helped his father pump gas. I felt my heart thudding as I watched them smile and laugh. Excited to start their adventure to Nuka-World. I always saw these vivid images of what this place looked like before the bomb. I knew I was the only one in the Commonwealth to have that pleasure. It made me perpetually sad knowing that none of these people got to experience the world before. I watched as the family went off down the road singing along to whatever song was popular on the radio. The image of the pristine new Red Rocket faded away, back to the rusted oxidized metal that was left in the aftermath.

That's what I wanted. I wanted to rebuild the world so that it could be enjoyed again. Then it came to me. I stumbled upon this position as Overboss so that I could change this park for the better. It would be the first step in a long line of improvements this world needed. I know this place would be good for the economy. It would provide jobs, and would teach people how to live again.

I stood up from the dirt road proudly and for once knew exactly who I was and what I wanted to do. I was going to tell Gage the truth and hope that he would accept me and follow my plans. I took a deep breath. If he didn't then…I would have to do what was best for the world and I would have to say… _goodbye._

I erased that thought from my head and tried to stay positive. He wouldn't go against me. I was sure of it. I picked up the pace as I ran back to the Gates. I couldn't reach the elevator fast enough. I ascended up to the penthouse and started to laugh uncontrollably. I had finally figured out who I was and what I wanted and _nothing_ was going to stop me. "Gage, Gage I-" I stopped in my tracks as I saw him sitting at the bar, Nisha standing behind him with an evil smile. My excitement faded as my face became stone cold. I approached slowly trying to ignore her and see what he was staring down at "Gage…? Is everything alright?" As I got closer I was able to see what laid before him. There was _my_ dog tags from the Brotherhood. _My_ holotapes from Shaun. _My_ vault suit and… _our_ wedding rings. There were a few more sentimental things, like the toy solider McCready had gifted me. I couldn't breathe as I stood waiting for him to say something.

It took him a few minutes to answer but then he finally spoke. "I told you everything about me. I let my guard down and trusted you." He looked up at me and his stare shook me to the core. I could see he had lost all trust. "I wondered why you never spoke about yourself. How every time I waited for you to saying something about your past you moved on or changed the subject." He shook his head as he rubbed at his face "This whole time I had the _sole survivor right_ here in these raider filled walls. The defender of the Commonwealth helped me clear this whole park for the people she thought were scum of the earth."

"Gage, no you don't understand" he interrupted me again.

"Oh no, I think I understand all too well." He got up and looked away from the trinkets in disgust.

"No you don't! You can't read my story from just a few pieces of clothing and tapes. You don't realize the struggle I face"

He turned to me and spit the words back at me " _struggle?_ The note that came with that toy solider and all the rest of your fan letters didn't seem like you were _struggling_ much." He chuckled "I mean, my God, 200 years old. Sitting here and pretending like you had no idea about this world or what it was. You destroyed the institute for Pete's sake. These are things you should tell a person."

"Gage, please, none of that matters. After I met you…" I struggle to express the emotions I felt for him "you're a kind, fair and justice man. Let me just explain and I-"

"I don't want to hear it anymore. Your words clearly mean nothing." He gestured to Nisha "do what you want with her…I don't even know who she is anyway." I watched him walk toward the doors to the penthouse, his head hanging so low that it almost wasn't visible behind his shoulders.

"Gage, no, please" I backed up as two disciples came up from the elevator behind me. Nisha and Dixy approached me laughing maniacally.

"I told you I would get you. Not so stupid am I? I knew you were hiding something and once I got Gage out of your corner you would be all mine" I tried to fight them off, but I felt so weak, all I could focus on was trying to get Gage's attention.

"Gage, please, don't go! Listen to me, just listen! "I thrashed away from them as my voice came in manic and shaky "Don't let them do it. Gage…I… _I love you_!" I watched him hesitate as he lifted his head. He turned slightly, looking at me from over his shoulder. Our eyes met and held our gaze. Then he turned and disappeared past the door. My heart broke in two as I let out one last scream. "Gage!"

"Shut up" Nisha smacked me across the cheek "sound the alarm and let the others know. We're going to have ourselves a little hanging in the center square."


End file.
